


Shadow Of The Beast

by Psyga315



Category: Beauty and the Beast (1991), Kung Fu Panda (Movies), Megamind (2010), Sonic the Hedgehog - All Media Types, Who Framed Roger Rabbit (1988)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Beauty and the Beast Fusion, Dark, Deconstruction, Film Fic, Gen, Mind Control, POV First Person, Parody
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-11-23
Updated: 2015-02-11
Packaged: 2021-03-01 16:49:24
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 13,968
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23800354
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Psyga315/pseuds/Psyga315
Summary: Shadow has been in many roles. Prince, Princess, Thief, King, Knight, Hero, Villain... He's been in every Disney movie twice or more as different roles. But when he receives news that an old friend is playing the role of Belle, he now must play his biggest role of all: A man who derails a fanmake.
Relationships: Maria Robotnik & Shadow the Hedgehog, Maria Robotnik/Tai Lung, Megamind & Minion





	1. Cadance

**Author's Note:**

> This was born from all these fanmakes that have Shadow the Hedgehog as so many of these weird roles, as well as some ideas that I presented in my two other fanfics, Sleeping Blooper and Blooper and the Beast.

My name is Shadow. Shadow the Hedgehog. I am the Ultimate Lifeform... And yet, the director saw me more as a freaking Damsel in Distress. I was cast as... I didn't even care to read up who I am. All I know was that I had to play my damn role twice. I was actually a little thrilled when I played the first part of the role, because I actually _wanted_ to be a sociopathic douche for once, and this role had me play as a bitchy bride. It was amazing, exhilarating, and probably the greatest role I've played yet. Heck, I've sent that Brit, Harry Potter, to die in a green fire, then taunt him in a cave. It was epic.

Then I realized that I had to play the _other_ part of the role. Suddenly, I was tackled by Harry Potter, and I was told to convince him that I'm the real bride by... doing _that._ I refused to do something so embarrassing to myself!

But... I had to.

" _Sunshine, sunshine, ladybugs awake..._ " I said in a monotone voice as I preformed the stupid handshake. I hate this part. " _Clap your hooves and do a little..._ " No. It was embarrassing when Potter, a man who had survived _two_ instant kills and took out a powerful wizard through bouncing said kill back at him, shook his ass in front of me. I will so not do the same to him.

" _No. That does it. I quit. Find someone else to play this role. You people make me sick._ " I told the author as I exited the stage.

* * *

This was the story I had told the barkeeper. He is a pretty cool guy. Killed his own creator because he didn't want to kiss a cardboard vampire wannabe. Seemed that he took over for... whoever was in the bar before and is working full time. He barely touches the laptop now. He breathed into his glass.

" _A Canterlot Wedding_. Twilight told me about that incident." He said. Oh, right. He's also in love... with a horse. Yeah, it sounds weird, I know. This _is_ Toontown, though. If women in skimpy red dresses can be married to a cartoon rabbit, then so could a bartender being in love with those new horses everyone keeps raving about.

"Did she tell you the part where the bride had to shake her ass?" I asked him. He nodded. "Figures. It's always a weird and perverted method with those horses. Next thing you know, they're going to set up a scenario where fanfics with the idea of one person in a harem with a thousand copies of herself is a logical idea!" I said as I chugged my drink.

"Well..." He said.

"OH SON OF A B-" That's when I heard the music play.

" _Who_ does she think she is? That girl has tangled with the wrong man! No one says no to Megamind!" said a blue skinned man with a large bulbous head.

"Okay, now they're seriously running out of ideas for who should be Gaston now." I muttered. I was one of those people who was cast as Gaston... In fact, I was probably every role in that damn movie. Gaston, Maurice, Beast, heck, I was Belle at one point. I know this movie so many times, to the point where I actually begun to sing alongside Le Fou's replacement: some fish on top of a robot. " ** _Gosh it disturbs me to see you Gaston, looking so down in the dumps._** "I then realized how Megamind was three syllables. There was no goddamn way they'd make the song sound as good.

And then I realized they weren't gonna play _Gaston_. Then... Oh God... I heard the man sing.

" ** _BECAUSE I'M BAD! I'M BAD!_** **_COME ON!_** " What I saw was something that would cause Gaston to spin in his grave... if he was actually dead. Megamind, his replacement, was dancing to Michael Jackson's _Bad,_ complete with choreography from the other villains dancing. The display... Seeing that blue man dancing and... Oh god...

As one angry black man once said: Enough is enough. I took out my berretta and pointed to the air. I've done this crap before, I think I'm allowed to shoot in a crowded area at least once or twice.

**_BANG_ **

Everyone stopped. Good. I then point my gun at Mr. Big-Head.

"How dare you stand where he stood?" I said to him. He was actually surprised. He backed up into his chair and even held his hands up.

"Woah, woah, woah, no need for unnecessary violence..." Megamind said. He then looked around. I saw the look in his eyes. I could tell he'd put up an act in three. Two... "After all," He said, more triumphantly, "you are a fool to try and take on Megamind! The man who killed Metroman!" I chuckled.

" _You_ killed a superhero? Heh. I killed _several_ special force agents, aliens from another world, _and_ the god of time. I've been in the shoes of many roles, including the man who you are filling in. I am the Ultimate Lifeform, capable of stopping time and slitting your throat if I so wished. You? From what I see, you're just a poser, unworthy of the role of Gaston. Gaston was a man of arrogance, a man who dedicated his very life to making a woman his by any means." I told him. I nearly made him shake in his boots.

"Hey... I know you! You're Shadow! Yeaaaaah! Man of a thousand roles! Prince, Princess, Villain, Hero, Saviour, Destroyer, it doesn't matter, you fit all roles!" His fishy friend told me. Megamind then snapped out of his shook state.

"Wait, you wore drags?" Megamind asked me.

" ** _That doesn't matter!_** " I said to him.

"Dude, it so does! I mean, you go on and on about slitting my throat, and yet I can't help but imagine you in a tutu... Ohh! It's so funny!" He said. He then laughed his ass off. Soon, the rest of the group snickered and laughed. I growled. I could shoot them. I really could. But we fictional characters can't die for real. All it would do is annoy people. I sat back at my seat. Then the doors open as I saw... A more fitting choice for Maurice, as he resembled a short old man. I could tell he was from Japan however. His gray hair looked excessively pointy to resemble real hair, and his purple eyes were nearly impossible for American human beings to have.

"Somebody help me! He has her! He has her locked in his dungeon!" The old man said. Megamind then focused on the old man. I focused back on my drink. I actually pondered on how the hell people can just proceed with these fanmakes despite an interruption like that... I remember just a week ago some guy tried to incite us to murder the author. I was there to shoo him out with my gun.

"Slow down, Muto, who's in the dungeon and who's holding her?" Megamind said to him.

"Tai Lung! And he has Maria captive!" He said. I spat my drink out to the bartender.

"M-maria?!" I said. Could it be? I turned around to listen to the crazy old man some more.

"Please! You have to help me!" Muto said. Megamind smirked and had two men, his fishy friend and a big, bald man with a scarf and a black jacket, lift Muto up and throw him out. Megamind laughed off as he returned to his chair. I paid the bartender my due and ran to find Muto.

There he was, sticking out of the snow bunker in a comedic way. I pulled him out. I had to know.

"Are you here to take my life?" He said to me with almost joyous praise. It was so odd to hear someone speak of their death so joyfully. He _had_ to be one of those Japanese people whose personalities were distorted by... what do they call them again? Bridge Shows?

"No. I just needed to find something. You said her name was Maria... What... What does Maria look like? I have to know." I said to him.

"Well... I don't see why I shouldn't tell you about her... She's my daughter, blue eyed... blond hair..." I knew it. I put my finger over his mouth.

"Th... Thank you." I said. For the first time in a while, my tone of voice was soft... almost peaceful. Every other time, I sounded like I had a stick up my ass, but now... Now it's actually like I'm happy.

And I should be. Because the girl who was my everything... The girl whose wish I follow to this very day... My Maria... She's alive, and in this very city. In this very fanmake.

And she's in the hands of this fanmake's version of The Beast. I knew I'd be risking a lot by derailing a fanmake I'm not even in... but...

Maria... It will be the first time since the ARK incident that I will get to see her. I can't just pass this chance up.


	2. Boromir

As I ran through the forest, I couldn't help but be reminded of another role I played. The dark and desolate place reminded me of my role as Boromir. I recalled that it was one of my better roles, even if I didn't fit it completely. It was my best role because I didn't give a crap about that role. I simply sat back and laughed through my short time in that role.

I was only in one scene: the meeting. Many characters from those Japanese shows were gathered, from that idiot who has that one damn dream of being a king of some pirates or whatever, to that obviously evil yet incredibly hot (to the girls, I mean) guy with that damn evil eye. Replacing Elrond was another one of these Japanese characters, the Fairy King Oberon. To be truthful, he was probably the only guy that actually _looked_ like he came from a fantasy novel with his elf ears, his emerald jewel crown, and his fairy wings. He even _looked_ like Elrond... save for the fact that he's blonde. I have never seen him in his own setting, so I wouldn't know if he was actually some reasonable authority figure...

For all I know, he's probably some sleazy guy who's lusting after some woman.

" _Bring forth the ring, Luffy._ " Oberon said to the pirate king wannabe as he got up and dropped off the ring on the table. My role was simple.

" _This ring... it could give us so much power... more power than we can ever imagine! Why not_ use _the ring? We could use it against its very creator!_ " I said. Aragorn's actor spoke up. He was a realistic looking character. Like Luffy, he too was a pirate... Or so he claims. He keeps on talking about how he could just take stuff because he's a pirate.

" _We can't use the ring. It answers to Naraku and Naraku alone._ " The red-coated pirate said.

" _And how the hell do you know that, Ranger?_ " I told the guy. Double pun. Turns out this guy was some sort of Power Ranger dude... Ugh.

" _He is no Ranger!_ " Legolas' actor said... No. I recalled the actor being female. Much like Oberon, she too looked so much like someone in a fantasy novel... Or some guy's _Dungeons and Dragons_ game. Unlike the Fairy King though, she was a High Elf, though she shared many of Legolas' traits. Long blonde hair, elf ears, heck, being confused for a girly man was a trait she had. " _He is Marvelous!_ " She said.

" _Pfffft. Yeah. In bed, probably._ " I said. That's when everything came to a screeching halt.

" _CUT! CUT! CUT!_ " The director said, getting off his chair. " _Shadow, Deedlit's not describing him. Marvelous is his name._ " The director said. He was probably the only Egyptian director I've ever worked with, yet he felt so Japanese it wasn't funny. Pale blonde hair, eyeliner, and even a golden necklace, earrings and even bracelets. He was probably one of those pretty boys that girls like to swoon over and try to make them the misunderstood guys that just wanted a hug. Though I got the feeling I'd be stabbed if I hugged him.

" _What? They name characters after adjectives now? What's next? A guy named Vicious?_ " I said. Then again, Gimli's actor was an adjective depicting an angry mood, so it wasn't like this thing was new.

" _Shadow, you're a great guy, but if you start enough fights, I'm going to have to fire you._ " The director said.

" _And? What will that do? I don't get paid, smartass. I can just quit. Any time. Any day."_ I said to him.

" _...One more mess up, and you're out the door. You're harder to control than Charlie_ _ **[EFF!]**_ _ing Sheen._ " He said. He then got to his chair. _"Action!_ "

" _Marvelous is right. We can't use it._ " Gandalf's actor said. Oh sure, Mr. Ishtar, it makes sense that Lelouch vi freaking Britannia could work as some old wizard dude. Then again, considering that whole evil eye business, I wouldn't be surprised if he was forced into making him Gandalf.

" _So why don't we just destroy it here and now!?_ " Gimli's actor was one of the only non-Japanese people to be a part of this project. His grumpy mood was present, even when acting in a three-movie long epic... Maybe he knew he was roped into three movies, and was pissed off that I got off easy by dying in the end of this movie. Grumpy ran with his pickaxe and tried to strike the ring, but, obviously, the ring just knocked him back, breaking apart his pickaxe.

" _The ring can't be destroyed by any means..._ " Oberon said. _Naw, ya think?_ , I thought. " _It must be casted back into the fires of Mount Doom... Back to whence it came. One of you must go and destroy it._ " Oberon said. This... Right here... This was my moment.

 _"One does not simply walk into Sodor. You can take a boat, but you can't walk there. It is an island, filled with trains. Trains with the curse of having faces... they are the eyes of Sir Topham Naraku, the Fat Controller. But... If we were to use the hawks..."_ That's when Mr. Ishtar spoke up.

" _CUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUT! SHADOW! How dare you mock one of the greatest pieces of literature ever?_ " He said. The cast began to look worried. I smirked. " _They are eagles! Not hawks! And even if we use them, Naraku's eye will see them and send his Ringwraiths at them! This problem of people talking about the eagles has been a nuisance to Lord of the Rings fans everywhere! It's like hearing people quote Monty Python when they play in a medieval RPG! Get the_ _ **[EFF!]**_ _out of here! Now!"_ He said. I laughed.

 _"Easy as pie. Later suckers._ " I said as I gave them all the bird.

Good times.

* * *

The forest reminded me a lot of the Mordor speech, however. Though without the black gates... or the eye... or the fire... or brimstone... or ash and dust... or even poisonous fumes. In fact... The only thing in common with Mordor was that it just felt dark and I found myself feeling under direct threat of being attacked. I pursued, however. I had to save Maria.

Fortunately, my extremely long flashback caused me to forget that I was in the forest and waltz right up to the castle, almost subconsciously. Damn. I knew this movie like it was my backyard. Regardless, I had to go.

I entered the castle.

* * *

"Maria?" I shouted. My voice echoed through the familiar castle... It was fixed since the last time I was here. Just how many times was this place broken or otherwise abused? Possibly too many times for me to count.

" ** _THEN GO AHEAD AND STAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARVE !_** " A loud roar bellowed. I knew that it was probably that Tai Lung person Muto was talking about. Even though he was acting his part, there was no way in hell he'd get away with abusing my Maria. I ran up the stairs just as that beast left, to the West Wing no less. When he was gone, I snuck in and knock on Maria's door.

"Go away!" Maria said. It was her alright. I recognized her heavenly voice anywhere.

"Maria. It's me, Shadow." I whispered out. Silence. For a good minute, there was silence. And then, I heard the door handle turning. Maria opened the door, took a second to look at me, and then ran to hug me.

"Shadow! It _is_ you!" Maria said. I warmly smiled as I held her.

"Maria..." I softly whispered into her ear.

That's when I heard the doors open. I turned to see Tai Lung. I will admit, he does look the part. A giant, muscular snow-leopard humanoid with purple pants. I glared at him.

"So... You're the beast that has Maria prisoner." I told him.

"She _chose_ to be my prisoner in exchange for her father. I suggest you leave before I make _you_ my prisoner as well." Tai Lung said.

"Well, fat chance. I'm here to rescue Maria." I told him. I then grabbed Maria's hand. "Come on, let's go." I told her. As I tried to go, Tai Lung leaped over us and landed in front of me.

"Oh, I don't think so... She's mine. I'm not gonna let you snatch her away from me!" He said as he struck a fighting pose... He's seriously thinking he could take the Ultimate Lifeform on? HAH! I grinned as I pulled out my gun and pointed at his face. However, right before I pulled the trigger, he ran to me and struck me in so many places. He then punched me away, knocking me onto the ground. I tried to get up... then my nerves started to cease up. I was paralyzed.

"Shadow!" Maria cried out to me. Tai Lung chuckled as he went up to me. He then picked me up by the neck.

"Next time you interfere with this fanmake, I'll do more than paralyze you. I will do more than kill you. I will _destroy_ you." He said. He then threw me out a window, my body went against the hard glass as a loud shatter broke out. I landed into the woods. I then heard the snarling of several wolves. I couldn't get up to defend myself. All I can do is sit there and let the wolves consume me.

Then... I heard several gunshots. I didn't know what happened, but the wolves ran off, one of them seeming yelping in pain. As my vision blurred out, I saw a figure in a leather jacket. I saw that he wasn't holding a gun... but a crossbow... Was... Am I really seeing _him_? He came to save _me_?

I passed out before I could get my answer of who this man was.


	3. Ecks

As I passed out, I began to recall a fanmake I took part in. One of my favourite ones. It was a remake of Ballistic: Ecks Vs. Sever, one of the worst films ever. How did it get so good then? Well, when you have a director who is off his rocker 24/7, it's hard _not_ to have some epic movie. Yeah, the plot didn't make a lick of sense, but people seem to give it rave reviews because unlike the real movie, we actually _acted_ in the movie.

The best part was the climatic train shootout. However, the director kept the title intact by combining Sever's and Gant's roles into one role as played by Van Helsing, the man who saved my life. I recalled a lot of great moments...

Me and Van Helsing were firing at each other with our guns and crossbows, going into a hand to hand combat sequence soon after... it was awesome! We complimented each other perfectly in our fighting. I was good in guns, he was good in swords. I was good in moving fast, he was good in packing punches. I was a demonic alien experiment thing that became the Ultimate Lifeform, he was an angel who became the Ultimate Vampire Hunter. If we fought crime, we would have made an awesome movie!

But... I'm stuck as a miscast Hedgehog...

* * *

My eyes opened as I saw a guy with blue as hell hair looking at me. I knew that idiot. He tried to start a revolt against one of the authors when I was cast as Gaston! He then turned to someone.

"Hey! He's awake!" He shouted, running up to go get whoever was there. I slowly got up, my nerves soon healing. I looked around and noticed I was in a dressing room. For who, I wondered. Then I noticed someone walk in. I knew it.

"Hey, Shadow. Long time no see!" He said to me. I smiled.

"Van Helsing! You ol' devil you!" I said. I tried to get up, but my nerves weren't completely better yet. I jerked back to the bed.

"What were you doing back at the castle? Especially during the enacting of another fanmake?" Van Helsing asked me.

"I tried to get Maria..." I said to them.

"Maria?" The blue-haired jerk asked.

"She's... a dear friend of mine." I said.

"Ah. I see. Maria's cast as Belle. She's becoming a pretty popular choice it seems." Van Helsing said. "Don't see why you're so bothered about this though." He wouldn't understand. But... I had to at least explain.

"She's... Possibly the only thing in my life that was ever happy. Just being within an arm's reach of her... It just makes me feel..." I then lowered my voice. "happy." I didn't want to shoot my own dignity in the foot like that. But it was the truth. I could hear that blue-haired ass laughing up a storm before Van kicked him.

"Shadow. I think I understand. If you want to derail the fanmake, that's fine with me. Heck, I might help you." Van Helsing said. The guy looked at him.

"Uh... what?" He asked.

"Look, Orion, that script was word-for-word. The sooner that fic goes off the rails, the better." Van Helsing said. I was beginning to get a little confused myself.

"Erm... Van, what is going on? What do you mean 'goes off the rails'?" I asked. He then turned to me.

"Well, I was getting pretty sick and tired of the fact that I was reduced to small time roles and decide to do something about it. When we were doing a fanmake of Sleeping Beauty, I shot Maleficent's replacement in the head with an arrow, and suddenly the story was changed. And it was excellent. After that, there was a boom of original fanmakes... Well, fanmakes with a lot of originality in them. People were doing contests to see who could derail their fanmake the fastest, even! However, there's still the remnant of fanmakes who think copying the original story, beat for beat, and with people sticking out of their roles like sore thumbs. No one should be tolerating that. That's why I formed the Wonderful Fanmakes Foundation. A foundation where the job is to help people derail fanmakes. People like you." Van Helsing said.

"Hmph. Well, you're obviously wasting your time with something so stupid." I said.

"Well, at least I'm not like my nemesis... Poor Vlad... Reduced to appearing in kids' shows..." Van Helsing said. I shuddered as I recalled the last fanmake he was in...

* * *

" _Just kick the ball, Shinji!_ " Dracula said, dressed in a blue dress and holding a football down. He was waiting for Shinji Ikari, dressed in a yellow shirt with a black wavy line, to run and kick the ball. However, when Shinji was close to the ball, Dracula pulled it away, causing Shinji to trip and fall on his back. Dracula then looked around to see if anyone would notice him. He then proceeded to suck the blood off the fallen teen.

* * *

"Nobody wants that, right?" Orion, the blue-haired man, said.

"... Right." Shadow said.

"Then from today on, you are an honorary member of the Wonderful Fanmakes Foundation!" Van Helsing declared. I scoffed.

"Thanks but no thanks. I need to get Maria. I can derail that story on my own." I said. By this time, my joints have healed, so I got up and off the bed. Before I exited the door, Van turned to me.

"... Very well. Be careful, Shadow." He told me. I nodded and headed out the door.

* * *

I tried to find my way back to the Castle. Luckily, the Wonderful Fanmakes Foundation was stationed near the location for the Beauty and the Snow Leopard fanmake, so I just needed to go back to the castle. My journey there was a little shorter than the previous journey. Mainly because I actually knew where I was going this time... Though... Something stopped me... No. _Someone_. I soon noticed Muto in the cold, laying there in a bank of snow. He was also coughing. He was pretty lost in the woods, and was shivering as well. He looked to me.

"Finally! I'm... about to... get... my... wish... Tell Black Luster Soldier... I..." Was all he said before he just... stopped. From his shivering all the way down to his _breathing_. I tried to shake Muto awake, but there was nothing. He just stared. I knew that he's dead but... How? Toons can't die. Even if they're killed in fanmakes, they'll still just get back up off screen... but... here I am, looking at a toon die before my eyes. As I forced the eyelids on his face to close, I looked at where I was. Near the castle. I was close. I buried Muto in the snow to prevent the wolves from devouring his corpse, and then I headed to the castle.

* * *

I entered the castle a lot more stealthily as opposed to my more direct approach, entering through the window. I then snuck around the room, trying to avoid being seen by the servants of Tai Lung. I then noticed Maria dancing with Tai Lung in the ballroom... Wait... That's when I realized. Muto was Maurice... Which meant...

I entered the ballroom.

"MARIA! How could you leave your father out in the cold!?" I shouted to her. It was weird, considering Muto wasn't her real father, but in this story, he _was_. It wasn't like Maria to be this inconsiderate of other peoples' well beings. Tai Lung stopped his dancing and glared at me like a dog about to strike. Maria on the other hand sluggishly turned to face me.

"... Tai Lung, who's this?" She asked. I could see something was off... Her eyes... they lacked any light. Anything that stands out. It was just a single color. A dull blue with no pupils. And... Did she just say what I think she just said? 'Who's this?' My jaw dropped as Tai Lung seemingly smirked.

"No one. He's no one, dear." He said. He then resumed dancing. He ignored me. I must have stood there for a while as they danced. Just thinking to myself why he ignored me.

That's when I realized. He promised me that he'd _destroy_ me if we met again... And destroy me he did. I... was frozen. Defeated. Eventually, I realized I had to cut my losses. Maria was Tai Lung's now. Though to, seemingly, add salt to the wound, he then motioned his lips towards Maria's own and... and...

I ran out of the castle. I couldn't bear to see that... that _beast_ kiss Maria. I hid my tears and ran. Who knows where. I just ran. The shock just... It was too much for me right now. When I stopped, that's when my sorrow left. In its place was only one thing. One thought that clouded my mind.

Tai Lung's going to be a dead man. And I'll make sure of it.


	4. Tom

For each few moments I ran, I couldn't help thinking of me pummeling Tai Lung until his blood was on the floor and the fiend was within an inch of his life… It's been like this for me. I remembered when I was asked to play the role of Tom for a _Tom and Jerry: The Movie_ fanmake. Throughout the fanmake, my determination to save Roll, Robin's replacement, from being in the hands of Aunt Figg's replacement became less of determination from my role and more determination from myself… It got to a point where it was… out of control, even for someone who derails fanmakes for fun, like me…

* * *

" _Daddy is_ dead." Madame Medusa said as her partner in crime, Mr. Snoops closed the door before me and my partner, Mickey Mouse, came to help her. In front of the door were Brutus and Nero, guarding the door like watchdogs. Mickey was doing his part in acting terrified, but as soon as I heard Roll's screams, I knew I had to go into action. I ran to the window, and smashed through it with my own body. The crocodiles gave little time to react to my dive and went for the defenseless mouse, who didn't realize until too late that I was going to fight. I got out my Beretta and shot Snoops' arm, causing him to let go of Roll's hand. I then pointed the gun at Medusa.

" _You get the hell out of this cabin right now, or else the next bullet I shoot will come right to your head._ " I snarled at Medusa. Medusa simply looked at me.

" _Uh… This isn't part of the script…_ " Medusa said.

" _I know._ " I said, shooting at her feet to give her a clearer message. She realized I meant business as she ran off in fear.

" _He's crazy! CRAZY I TELL YOU!_ " She went, knocking over the lantern and setting the cabin on fire. I turned to Roll, offering her my hand.

" _Come on, we gotta get out of here, Maria!_ " I said… That's when I caught what I said. Maria? But… This was Roll! I knew then why I wanted to help her… She reminded me so much of Maria, that she almost became a replacement. Needless to say, along with the wanton gun violence, Roll would rather take her chances in the fire as she ran into them. Fortunately, by that time, Roll's Father, played by Indiana Jones, arrived to save Roll.

He didn't save me from the fire and the flames. He tried, but I just stood there. Reflecting on what I just did.

Reflecting on what I had become.

* * *

That's why I ran. I ran because I knew I could never be with Maria. I would only alienate her thanks to my aggressive means to protect her. I wanted to hurt Tai Lung, but in doing so, I would also hurt Maria… I had to think this… I had to drown my sorrows.

So I went to the tavern.

* * *

As I entered the bar, I noticed the mob that was supposed to raid the castle all crammed in. Megamind was sitting on his chair, obviously angry over _something_. I walked in closer to hear what he was talking about.

"I mean, seriously! She should have been here by now! Maria is totally throwing off the script!" Megamind said. His fish head friend turned to him.

"Maybe she slept in?" He asked. I knew I shouldn't butt my head into this, but it seemed that they should know.

"She's stuck dancing with Tai Lung. Muto's dead and she just focused on Tai Lung." I said as I sat on the chair near the bar-stand. Megamind soon listened in.

"Wait… what? Why? What is she doing with Tai Lung? She's supposed to be back here, showing us his face!" Megamind said. Soon, I heard someone get up from a far away table. The sound of his shoes clacking onto the floor sent several toons to shiver at his walk towards me. Though there were some, I included, who didn't feel that same amount of fear coming from whom I can safely assume is the person who would play the role of the asylum manager. His cane slammed onto the floor once he turned to me.

"So…" The man, covered head to toe in black clothing, an equally black hat, and rounded sunglasses, said. "this Fanmake is what I thought it would be after all."

"I'm quite surprised they still let you walk in this town, Doom." I muttered. The man then grabbed me by the fur near my shoulder, pulled me out of my seat, and lifted me up.

"And I'm quite surprised they let _you_ walk in this town, Shadow." Judge Doom said before dropping me back onto the seat. I brushed myself off. "But logic of why video game characters are in Toontown aside, you may have helped me on a case I've been meaning to close."

"What sort of case?" I asked.

"The kind of case you _should_ be taking interest in… I'm just surprised that it's only _now_ that you noticed." He said.

"Noticed what?" I asked him.

"A couple of weeks ago, Amy Rose turned up missing after she did a fanmake of _Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs_. Later that week, Cream the Rabbit was reported by her mother that she was gone as well, after she went for a fanmake of _Cinderella_. Same thing happened with Rouge when she performed in the _Sleeping Beauty_ fanmake, as with Blaze in a _The Little Mermaid_ fanmake.I've been following the lead and have noticed a pattern." Doom said.

"Female Sonic characters getting kidnapped in Disney Princess movies?" I asked.

"Yes. I have a sneaking suspicion of what it is that's happening, but I was wondering if you had any idea, considering how you saw Maria and Tai Lung." Doom said.

"Yeah. The author is trying to pair up the Sonic characters with other people." I said.

"Really? I was thinking of something a little… darker. Think about it Shadow… Most of these Disney Princess fanmakes usually cast _who_ as the prince?" Doom asked me. That's when I realized.

"No way…" I muttered. I then spoke up. "Should have known an author was behind this…" I said.

"Exactly. And if my calculations are correct, he's just about done with this film after winning Maria's heart." Doom said.

"Let me guess. We have to raid his castle and stop the author from writing again, right?" I asked him.

"Not quite. If I am correct, the author may have some of the other people he 'won' over somewhere within the castle. A sort of keeping place, as if it were. We have to go and rescue them, _then_ we can pass on judgement to the author. However, we must act with haste. If this is like any of the previous fanmakes, then the author might very well be getting ready to move onto the next Princess movie and obtain another female Sonic character." Doom said. I then turned to the horde of villains, smirking.

"Alright. Guys, we're going to raid the castle, just as the script ordered! I know, we're going on the rails, but the author had derailed this story and left you all in the dust! I think it's time to remind this guy that we're still in this movie!" I said to them. The group turns to Megamind, who then began to think about the situation.

"Let's see… play the villain and ruin the heroine's fun… or play the villain and ignore the hero's plea for help…" Megamind pondered.

"How about this." Said Adam from the bar. They all turned to look at the bartender. "Go over and kill the author before he does this exact same thing to someone you know and love. Shadow just told you that someone is dead. And I'm talking _dead_ dead." Adam said to Megamind.

"And what do you know about killing authors?" Megamind asked Adam. Adam then got out from the bar and walked right towards Megamind and stared into his face. Then, under one single breath, he said:

"More than you'd ever know…" Megamind's pupils shrunk.

"Ooooooooooooookay… Well, looks like we're going on a little raid then…" He said, chuckling sheepishly.

"Good. Arm yourselves, we attack in an hour." I said to them.

And throughout the hour, I saw them gear up. Megamind, to my credit, was an evil genius when allied with Gru. The two spent some time working out the best way to break down the castle doors and taking out the enchanted servants. Me and another guy, Ralph, began to teach some of the newer villains the finer art of, to put in Ralph's words: "wrecking it", while Doom laid out the battle plans for the raiding of Tai Lung's castle.

And even if I was stuck onto the role of Gaston for the time being, I knew that derailing Tai Lung and the Author's story was gonna be worth it in the end.


	5. Leonidas

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This chapter will be split between the first person and third person perspective. First person will still be Shadow.

By the end of the night, we were prepared. We were ready. The army of villains I saw before me was numerous. It reminded me of the time I was Leonidas, leading an army of 300 Hedgehogs… Deviantart was having a sale on Original Characters, and I figured I needed a few with colors so bright they'd blind the eyes of the Persian archers. Though my final confrontation with the Xerxes actor was a little… odd…

" _You are surrounded, Hedgehog._ " It wasn't the Robotnik that I remember. Not my Robotnik… This was a completely different one. He rolled his R's so hard, you could see his throat jumble. The director probably was thinking too literal when people talked about "parodies" and had this Robotnik cast as Xerxes… I wouldn't mind, but personally, if you're going for evil Persian overlord, I heard stories of a Robotnik that actually turned animals into robots and has an entire army of them… That would have been cool… But no, I was facing these cartoonish looking robots.

" _Let me guess,_ " I talked to him. " _Surrender and I will be spared?_ "

" _Exactly! Mobius will be mine, though you may keep your little city!_ " Robotnik said. If he was the doctor that I know, he was pulling my leg.

" _Well, I'm a bit accustomed to the idea that villains aren't very trustworthy._ " I said to Robotnik. I smirked and slipped off the Inhibitor Rings. In a flash, I was gone and several of the robots that Robotnik had were destroyed by my hands.

" _GRRRRRRRRRRRRRR…_ " Robotnik gritted his teeth so hard that I could have sworn they broke under the pressure. " _Get him! Get him and his army of Hedgehogs!_ "

If this was 300, like, the real 300, I would have gotten my ass handed to me by a stream of arrows. But the Persian King is an incompetent Robotnik, his army are a horde of robots you would see in a goofy Saturday morning cartoon, and we had an army of Hedgehogs, half of which claim to either be Sonic's son or his BBBFF… whatever _that_ means. A complete reversal.

We zoomed off at the speed of sound and his million-robot army was reduced to a simple dozen by the time I threw a Chaos Spear at them. In what amounted to thirty seconds, we won, and as the film closed out, we could hear Robotnik screaming " _I HATE THOSE HEDGEHOGS!_ "

So naturally, this battle would be a cinch.

* * *

At least, I would think so. The army and I marched through the woods. Many of the villains took this route many times, though this was perhaps their first without the iconic song. We wanted to be stealthy with the approach, and the crowd going "kill the beast!" would be rather hard to upkeep that approach. On the way, I discussed my story to Doom, who in turn told the other villains to provide context. As we walked, I felt my shoulder being poked by a very ticklish feather. I turned to see one of the villains, Shen.

"So, Shadow… From what I heard of this Tai Lung, he seems to be a very challenging Kung Fu master… Not even the Furious Five managed to defeat him… Perhaps we need to solve the problem from afar…" Shen said. That's when I noticed his wolf minions lugging around a giant box. I instantly knew he was bringing some big guns.

"Shen, I appreciate your pragmatics, but I want to keep the castle in one piece. There's people that need to be saved, and I don't want you to blow down the castle. Besides, we got some heavy hitters on our side who can do just that." I said. I then felt his metal claw pierce my shoulder.

"Perhaps you missed the part where I said he managed to defeat five of the most skilled Kung Fu warriors in my time. If he managed to defeat them, their master, and the so-called Ultimate Lifeform, what makes you think an entire legion of villains would be able to take him on?" Shen asked me.

"This isn't a kung fu movie where one guy can beat up a gang of people. We're in the hundreds. There's only him and his servants. We'll be fine." I said.

"Have you _seen_ his servants? From your story, you only seemed to encounter Tai Lung. I wouldn't doubt he'd have some competent servants." Shen said.

"Your point? The servants will either be weird animals or powerless… Maybe both." I said. Shen groaned a bit. He let go of my shoulder.

"We will see, Shadow." Shen said. We were about to arrive at the castle before Doom came to me and discussed a battle plan.

"Shadow, we'll split into two teams. I'll go into the castle with the majority of the villains to provide a distraction, you'll sneak into the dungeons and find out anything that you can about what this author is doing. You might also come across the missing female Sonic characters. Understand?" Doom said.

"You don't have to say it twice. I might be able to do it all by myself." I said.

"Don't get cocky, Shadow. We're still villains, after all, and pride will always come before the fall for us." Doom said. By the time he finished, we arrived at the castle. It was my cue to leave. Doom turned around and pointed to me. I was followed by Chantel DuBois and some guy. It wasn't until I saw the skull shirt that I realized that the guy was a grown up Sid Phillips. My mind figured out why Doom picked these two to follow me, especially after DuBois began to sniff her way around the castle grounds.

"Scents are faint… Possibly due to the castle walls… But they're recognizable…" She muttered. She stopped, her nose touching the rear part of the castle. "Hedgehog… Rabbit… Bat… They're underneath. Sid." DuBois said. Sid came to her and took out a stick of dynamite. He put it right to the ground and lit a match. He set the fuse to burn. Hopefully by this point, Doom would have raided the castle.

* * *

Judge Doom arrived in front of the castle. He had already sent the animal tracker and the ex-toy torturer to help Shadow. He needed all he could use to fight this author, even if he wasn't all that strong. The gates were pretty big, but they won't need a ram for this one.

"Ralph." Doom said. Ralph came, pounding his fist into his palm. He then charged into the gates with both fists ready to wreck them… But the gates opened for him. He tripped and fell into the hall of the castle. Doom felt a little curious as to why this was. He heard clapping.

"Well, well, well… I could have sworn I've altered enough of the script to make sure me and Maria would have a… happy ending… But it seems that I have to earn it." Spoke a dark voice. Doom could see Tai Lung arriving from the top of the stairs, marching on his way down to the hall. "And earn it… I shall…" Tai Lung said. He snapped his fingers.

* * *

The dynamite exploded, giving us the chance to get into the dungeon. DuBois had the exact position correct. We were directly at the dungeon, and DuBois' scent tracking skills almost doubled. We followed her.

* * *

Doom could hear the dynamite exploding… Sid couldn't have picked a louder stick, it seemed. His mind was too focused on Ralph, who was suddenly knocked over. His eyes were lifeless as a tiger's paw was imprinted onto his chest. Doom looked up from Ralph's body and saw Tigress, eyes equally lifeless, with her palm held out.

"Behold! A technique more lethal than my paralyzing punches! The One-Inch Punch! I have had my most favoured servant teach this technique to the others, including myself… And he's about to use it on Shadow…" Tai Lung said. Doom backed away in surprise.

"Oh yes, I know where Shadow is. Especially with that explosion… My servant is zeroing in on his position." Tai Lung said.

"Pull out! We gotta help Shadow!" Doom said. He heard another snap and four more servants came. Monkey, Mantis, Crane, and Viper all moved to where Tigress was, their eyes just as lifeless as Tigress'.

"I don't think so, Judge. I'm not gonna let my love quest come to a close. Furious Five… To battle!" Tai Lung snapped his fingers again.

"Yes boss…" The five said in a monotone. They struck a fighting pose. Doom gritted his teeth. He had no choice. He closed his eyes for a brief moment. He then opened them. The eyes popped out into daggers.

" ** _CHAAAAAAAAAARGE!_** " He screamed in a high pitched voice. The villains all ran forth into the castle.

* * *

The three of us continued running. However, I began to hear this odd disco song. I saw a flaming blue ball of light fly forth like a comet across the dungeon. It knocked me, Sid, and DuBois aside. The ball landed, revealing a strange figure crouching there. The figure stood up. His suit was all black with bits of white glittered around it, like they were stars. There was a blue sash attached to one of his shoulders. His helmet had the designs of a comet in space with almost blood red eyes.

"What the heck is that?" I asked. The figure answered.

" **Kamen Rider Meteor. Your fate is mine to decide.** " He said, swiping his thumb across his "head". I heard the same monotone in his voice that I heard in Maria's. I stepped forward.

"Sid, DuBois, get behind me." I said. Meteor prepared himself, going into a kung fu pose. I smirked and loaded my pistol. "Let's see if kung fu can survive against modern pragmatism." I said as I got out my gun. I cocked it and prepared to fire.

* * *

Tigress leaped up into the air and tried to take out Judge Doom with her hands. However, she was knocked back by a blue blast and immobilized. Doom looked over and saw Syndrome had been the one who fired that blast.

"She won't get up anytime soon… I'm gonna end this!" Syndrome ran up to Tai Lung. Tai Lung simply smirked as Syndrome charged up his gauntlet for an immobilizing punch to the head. Tai Lung turned around as Syndrome got close enough and got his hand ready. As soon as Syndrome was about to throw a punch, he could feel his heart explode. He only had a few moments to look down before he fell, but those few moments had shown that Tai Lung had the faster fists.

"SYNDROME!" Doom shouted as Syndrome's body went limp and hit the floor. He heard a hiss and saw Viper heading towards him.

* * *

Bang went my gun as my bullets streaked towards Meteor. However, he managed to catch them effortlessly. He dropped the bullets and ran for me, throwing a few punches my way. I dodged a few of them, but managed to get myself hit by one… and dear God it hurt. It felt like I was shot by cannon fire. I needed to keep going though. I didn't want to have a stupid punch keep me down, so I threw a punch at his face, which managed to catch him off guard. However, all it did was create space between me and him. Good. I needed to formulate a battle plan. I heard Meteor scoff and his hand went for the wrist-worn device that he had, pulling the first lever.

" **MARS ON… READY?** " The device said. Before I had time to react, he touched the device.

* * *

Doom didn't have to do anything to get the snake away from him. Johnny seemed to do that for him as he swatted Viper away. He saw Monkey about to attack him and Doom, though he was able to notice something slithering on Monkey. Monkey suddenly felt his arms being pulled back further and further until... _snap._ His arms had been broken by what seemed to be an invisible force. Monkey fell in pain as the invisible slitherer faded back into a familiar purple.

"Aaaah... There we go." Randall said, cracking his fingers. Doom sighed in relief until his shoulder was tapped by Johnny.

"Uh... I think we have a problem." Johnny pointed to the remaining fighter: Crane. As Doom saw Crane, he had Hopper right in his beak, then opened and closed it a few times to eat and consume him.

"Keep on the assault!" Tai Lung told the two. They ran out, arms ready for a fight.

* * *

I have no idea how the heck he managed to do it, but somehow he turned his hand into a miniature version of the planet Mars... That was on fire. He threw a punch towards me. I was lucky enough to dodge the punch, though parts of my fur were burnt off and I could feel the planet burning me even more. He was in a close enough proximity to me though. I had to resolve it quickly before he would be able to burn more of my fur... or worse, my own skin! I pointed my gun right at his gut and fired. He was at point blank range, so he felt the full force of my gun. At least, I thought so as he staggered back. He straightened up and it was as if the bullets were not even hitting him. By that point, I figured out that his suit wasn't gonna be vulnerable to conventional weaponry. I cracked my knuckles after putting away my gun. Meteor decided now was the time to pull the second lever.

" **JUPITER ON… READY?** "

* * *

Johnny and Randall kept up with Crane's tricky fighting style, though his flying across the room was tiring even for them, as they slumped to the ground, out of breath. Crane took this to his advantage and swooped in for the kill. However, he ran right into a Guan dao, though it was close enough to cripple his wings and not outright kill him. Crane crashed down as Shen stowed the dao away in his robes.

"It would really be easy if you would just surrender, Tai Lung. I mean, as much as I like see you decorate the entire West Wing with your entrails, the kind of mission we're pulling doesn't call for wanton destruction." Shen said. Tai Lung looked to Shen and hopped down to him.

"Surrender? You want me to... surrender?" Tai Lung said to Shen, closing in on Shen.

"Yes. Or we can settle this one on one." Shen gave a coy smile towards the snow leopard.

"I do not wish to surrender my collection... I've spent so much time getting them... I will refuse to let some... horde of villains take that away from me!" Tai Lung said. He subtly placed his hand to Shen's chest.

"What are you insis-" Before Shen could finish, Tai Lung already pressed his palm against his chest so hard and so fast. Shen fell down. Another victim to the One-Inch Punch. Tai Lung looked to the others.

"They'll be mine... AND MINE ALONE!" Tai Lung ran to Johnny, who was just getting up, and punched his chest with his palm, knocking the monster across the hall. Tai Lung spun around and gave Randall a roundhouse kick to the head, concussing him. Tai Lung snarled and looked to Doom. Tai Lung ran towards Doom and screamed as loud as he could.

* * *

His arm shifted into a replica of the planet Jupiter next. I shot at the Rider, but all he managed to do was deflect them with his giant globe for a hand. I decided to do a different tactic. I leaped into the air and curled myself into a ball... No. I wasn't going into fetal position. I was copying this move off a certain hedgehog that will remain nameless. I swooped to the Jupiter hand, bounced off it, then swooped towards it again. I repeated this for about a minute, with each bounce causing a bigger and bigger crack to show on the hand. Before I could land the final blow, though, I was punched high into the air.

" **WATCHAAAA!** " Meteor screamed as the force of the punch broke Jupiter and sent me flying up into the air, right onto the ceiling of the dungeon floor. I fell down to the ground as Meteor readied his next weapon.

" **SATURN ON... READY?** "

* * *

With one swipe of his buzz saw, Doom managed to score the first cut on Tai Lung. It bought him a bit of breathing room, though Tai Lung took only a few seconds before he went to attack him again. Doom swung at Tai Lung. Tai Lung was hit, but not with the force of a punch. No. It was the force of an anvil. It knocked him across the room and right into a wall. Doom looked upwards and leaped up with some springs located in his shoes. Tai Lung struggled to get up, but he was still beaten badly by the anvil.

* * *

His arm shifted into Saturn and immediately swung his arm at me, sending out violet colored rings that flew off from the planet. I got up and jumped out of the way, but one of them cut my leg, causing me to fall to the ground. I got up, though the pain was causing me to limp. However, I could see up in the distance... Maria? Yes! It was Maria, standing in a jail cell and staring at a wall. She wasn't attentive to me, but I just gotta get her attention.

"MARIA!" I shouted to her. Maria just blinked. I had to come closer to her. "MARIA!" I continued to shout. Another disk came towards me. I could hear the buzzing. I ducked down, letting the disk just shave the ends of my fur off. The disks flew towards the jail cell bars and cut them. Fortunately, the disks didn't seem to cut into Maria... Though when I got up, I figured out why: it was coming back towards me. It was too late, however, as I was slashed by the disk. I was knocked to the ground. All I felt was a huge gash on my chest. However, I felt a new feeling: I was picked up by the neck. I was staring face to face with Meteor. I looked to Maria as I felt the Rider put his fingers on my chest.

"M...Maria..." I muttered. I outstretch my arm towards her. I don't know what happened, even to this day, but as I pleaded and begged for Maria to notice me, I noticed a glimmer in her eye, as if, for a brief moment, she recognized me. The glimmer turned into a shine as I saw her eyes lose their dullness. She saw me in the hands of the Rider, just in time for him to bring in the finishing move.

" _STOP!_ " Maria screamed out with a full range of emotions. At that moment, Meteor did just that. He was seconds away from punching my heart. He stood there and froze. It wasn't until a while after that he managed to put me down. His hands shook a bit before he touched his belt and took it off. In a flash of light, Meteor changed into a human form.

"I... I'm sorry about that... I wasn-" I knew what the Rider was trying to say.

"Yeah, no worries. I think by now it's obvious that whatever the author is up to, it involves brainwashing." I told him.

"Wait... The Author? Oh no..." He said. He got on his belt again, and then placed in a blue switch. He soon pulled a silver tab to the edge of the belt.

" **METEOR, READY!** " The belt said, giving off some rather funky disco music. The Rider gave me his hand.

"Hang on." He told me. He flipped a switch on the side of the belt, causing the black globe on his belt to spin and create the disco music. We were soon hit with a large blue energy beam.

* * *

"Where is it?" Doom asked as he looked around the West Wing. It wasn't the broken furniture that littered the Wing that he was looking for nor was it the glowing red rose at the end of the Wing. No. He was searching for something that the author of the fanmake used. A computer... But... He just couldn't find it. All he saw that was different were crude drawings of the female Sonic characters standing in similarly crudely drawn backdrops. Doom recognized one of them as a backdrop of Atlantica. In all the drawings though, there was a kid next to them. All of them had the same brown haired kid in a blue shirt and white pants. Doom backed away as he found that though.

"So... You finally found out my secret..." Tai Lung's voice echoed through the hall. Doom turned around and saw Tai Lung walking towards him.

"You're... A self-insert!" Judge Doom said. Tai Lung gave a simple smirk.

"Why yes, yes I am... This character is just a costume for this story. Alas, it is time for you to meet your end." Tai Lung said, getting his fists ready. However, disco music loudly played as a giant blue sphere of fire flew towards the two. It landed right between Tai Lung and Doom, revealing...

* * *

Meteor and I looked towards Tai Lung. I pulled out my pistol and pointed straight at the leopard before Meteor stopped me. He stepped towards Tai Lung.

" **HersheyEater28, you're under arrest for the kidnapping of several female characters.** " Meteor said.

"That's your name? Hershey Eater?" I laughed. Tai Lung also gave a chuckle.

"So, Ryusei, you were able to snap out of my control... I see I don't need this disguise any longer, especially since I've fulfilled the conditions of the enchantment." Tai Lung said. Suddenly, Tai Lung glowed in a bright yellow light that blinded me, Meteor, and Doom. When the light faded, Tai Lung was gone. In his place was a kid with brown hair, a blue shirt, and white pants.

"A kid? That's the criminal mastermind?" I asked, my eyebrow arching.

"I am not a kid! I'm a grown up _man_! And why do you people keep insisting on stealing my wives!? I mean, seriously, leave me alone!" The kid began to whine. Funny considering how before, he was all calm and composed like some generic villain who has his foe tied to a rope and be lowered into a piranha pit.

" ** _Your_** **wives? You don't** ** _own_** **them!** " Meteor — I guess I should start calling him Ryusei — said.

"Hey, that's just a stupid disclaimer I tag on all my fanfics! It doesn't mean anything!" Hershey said.

"You _do_ realize that doesn't help you in a legal matter... Especially since you literally _stole_ them." Judge Doom said.

"Sh-Shut up! Since when did you people come and boss me around!?" By this point, I had enough of the kid's whining. I held my gun again and ran to the kid. I pressed the barrel against his head.

"Listen here, punk! Just because you have some fancy-schmancy computer that makes us dance like puppets doesn't mean it gives you free reign to do what you please!" I yelled at the kid. I glared at the kid and I could feel his body quivering in fear from the gun. Part of me wanted to smirk, but the anger in me wouldn't allow me.

"C-computer? I don't have that..." Hershey said. He gulped.

"Then what were you using for..." I heard Judge Doom. Then silence. "Oh... My... Shadow! He wasn't using a computer!" He shouted.

"Wait, what?" I asked before feeling a sharp pain. I looked down and saw that I was stabbed by a pencil. I was then pushed back by the kid's fist. I clutched onto my wound as I saw the kid take out a sketchbook.

" **It can't be... How did you get a hold of a Sketchbook?** " Ryusei said. I glared at the sketchbook. I hadn't seen anything like it.

"I found it in my father's closet! It's really fun to use! Better than those crappy computers. These actually let you alter people's memories, make them do your bidding, and all that fun stuff!" Hershey let out a bit of a sadistic smile. I pointed my pistol, aiming at the kid, but the wound from the pencil pained me enough not to focus on the shooting. Instead, I grunted to him.

"Your stupid sketchbook killed someone! I presume that it allows for that too, Ryusei?" I asked him.

" **Yeah. That's why** **the Official Fanmaker's Association banned that thing five years ago! Consider murder and possession of an illegal means of projecting Fanmakes added to your list of offenses, Hershey!** " Ryusei said.

"No! I'm not giving up my wives _or_ my fun! I won't let you people boss me around!" Hershey said, scribbling on the sketchbook. Ryusei ran to stop him from sketching more, but as soon as he did, he was wacked away by a dragon's tail. The tail slithered from Hershey's waist as his hands grew and mutated into claws. He kept on sketching, sprouting dragon wings on his back. He threw the sketchbook down along with the bloodied pencil as a dragon's head emerged from his chest. I saw the sketch of a mutant dragon-brachiosaurus hybrid. Hershey's body grew to half the size of the castle, breaking the West Wing. Hershey was able to fly out before his growth broke more of the castle, but it didn't prepare us for what happened next.

Hershey, or at least, the Dragon Head, spat a stream of fire towards us. I ran to Meteor and Doom. Clutching to both of them, I ran out of the castle and focused. I was able to teleport myself and the others out in time before Hershey burned the entire West Wing. I landed and saw the giant monstrosity sit on top of the castle. Hershey transformed into a lizard-like monster with two heads, one head being the Dragon Head, the other having the head of a brachiosaurus from the neck down. He possessed golden dragon claws, wings, and even a tail. Some of his body was slick and smooth, but the skin that connected to the dragon parts were scaly... In a sense, it was kind of like if Biolizard and King Ghidorah decided to have a baby and this would be the result. I glared at the monster that was Hershey.

It was time to end this.


	6. Shadow

" **METEOR STOOOOOOORM!** " With almost no hesitation, Ryusei brought out a strange device with what looked like a Beyblade stuck to it. " **METEOR ON, READY?** " I close my eyes at the inevitable lightshow that he pulled off. Now he looked even more ridiculous, as the black suit turned bright blue and he gained golden shoulder pads. I sighed. What I wouldn't do to get all seven Chaos Emeralds and go super.

Instead, I took off my Inhibitor Rings and flew towards the monstrosity that roosted onto the top of the castle. The monstrous lizard-dragon roared and spewed fire at me, though I easily dodged it. I flew up to the Dracchiosarus and socked him in the jaw. I knocked it down, hoping that it fell to its death. Sadly, no such thing happened as the Dracchiosarus landed on its feet and began to smash up the castle.

At first, I had no idea why, but as the castle beneath my feet shook, I realized it was trying to kill us by crushing us with the castle. I jumped off as the castle crumbled down. Several villains didn't make it out, but I saw Judge Doom and the blue boy wonder jump, along with a few villains.

"DAMN IT!" I pounded my fists together. However, Meteor spoke up.

" **At ease, Shadow. The Sketchbook can only permanently kill someone if their death was written in it. With luck, we can fix that.** " Meteor said.

"You speak of death like it's a mere inconvenience!" I would have said, but I catch myself just shy of a few words considering I'm the guy that cheated death at one point and Judge Doom himself is a toon who actually _did_ die at one point. The other villains ran off. I couldn't blame them. Not a lot of the villains I've recruited were able to pull a Maleficent and turn into gigantic monsters and those that did are pretty smart enough to _not_ do that again, lest they die. Besides, I can take on this monster myself, and judging from the strength that he has, I guess Meteor is also able to take it on. However, I saw something else: the dungeon was exposed with the ab. It wasn't gunning for us… it was gunning for…

"MARIA!" I shouted and flew down to the dungeon where the massive dragon claw was about to swipe at Maria and the other girls. I punched the claw and stopped it from snatching the girls up. They all looked to me.

"Shadow!?" I heard Amy's voice.

"What are you doing here?" Rogue was next.

"Is Mr. Shadow going to save us?" Cream spoke up.

"Hmph." Blaze just gave a simple grunt.

"Shadow! You came!" Maria said. I look to her and nod… A flush of memories came in my head of me and her on ARK, gazing upon Earth, racing down that slope I always loved in ARK, and helping her father cure Maria's illness…

That moment cost me dearly. A claw swatted me as painful memories of the attack that GUN did on ARK clouded my mind. As I hit the wall, the image of that man shooting Maria was all I can think of. My head began to hurt as I recalled what I did afterwards, after I woke up. I exacted revenge, hurt many innocents, blew up half the moon, redeemed myself and died…

After that, everything was a haze. All I know was that I was saved by Robotnik's robots and for a time thought I was a clone or an android due to my amnesia. I vaguely remember other stuff, such as the time we time traveled or when that giant time monster attacked everyone and had to take two Sonics to defeat.

What the hell was I doing with my life? I remember perfectly. I was in a drag, being Cinderella or Snow White. I was the son of a king who was murdered by my uncle and spent the rest of my life until my adulthood farting around with a starfish and a sponge. I was a kid's toy and that I was supposedly part of a huge cowboy phenomenon. I was that little kid that asked Count Olaf why he's ripping the Christmas decorations off a tree. I could see the Dracchiosarus glare to me. The dragon's mouth opened up and inside was Hershey's face.

"Hah! Dumbass!" Hershey said. "I've seen you in a lot of Fanmakes… You don't fit in any of them! So why? Why do you waste your time in them?" Hershey's draconic tail swiped down and whipped me. I was crushed to the ground. And I sat there. Wondering. Why did I waste my time? All the roles I was in were horrible! Even the roles I _did_ enjoy seemed crap now. Another crush onto me. I could hear Maria screaming out my name, but I look up and see Maria and the others held back with one of the Dracchiosarus's claws. I could hear the poinks of the Piko Piko Hammer as it hit solid gold. I just sat there and let the beatings happen. I close my eyes and embraced the cold feeling of death.

* * *

Back in the day, when fanmakes were still a thing, people cast me in a bunch of fanmakes. Sonic was cool, so at the time, all Sonic characters were cast. However, sometimes we barely fitted in the roles. The time I had when I was fighting the Dracchiosarus wasn't the first time I lost faith in the fanmakes. During the time when I was cast in a bunch of them, I was frustrated with the many lack of good roles for me and considered leaving. Then I got a call from someone.

" _I'm so sorry to call you here, Shadow._ " A fanmake author said to me. He was ambitious, I can give him that. He wanted to remake all the Sonic the Hedgehog games from Adventure to Lost World. He was around Sonic Adventure 2 when he gave me the call. He had hit a stump. " _The person I had cast is horrible for the role! She's so timid and weak! I want to make a replacement, and I called you here because the person I found would be perfect for you! Just look!_ " I looked around.

" _Yo._ " A teenage girl's voice, the tone sounding like one of those high-school delinquents, called to me and I looked. I jumped back.

" _WHAT THE!?_ " To this day, I had no idea if Robotnik actually cloned me but spliced the DNA with a human, as the person, outside of the obvious change of genders, had black hair with a red highlight or two. While she lacked my blood red eyes, she had a dull grayish shade. She even had a black school uniform on with a reddish orange eye looking at me. I shudder as I faintly recall the time an eye stalked me around and tried to get me to remember my past.

" _Could I talk with the person you're replacing?"_ I ask the author and the strange look-a-like.

* * *

There she was. Sitting in a blue fold out chair. Her knees were bunched up as she held her plaid skirt down with clenched hands. I looked upon her face as I saw her frowning and her purple eyes pointed downwards as a few tears streamed down from her red-framed glasses. Her hair was split into two black, braided twintails.

" _I'm… I'm sorry, Mr. Shadow…_ " She said. The author was right; she was no fit for me. I spoke up.

" _Why are you going for a role you can barely fit?_ " I asked.

" _I… I just thought I'd be cool if I… If I acted as someone cool…"_ The girl said. I could practically hear her voice break down. I wiped the tears from her face. Looking back, I merely did this at first to ensure the female clone of me didn't get the part.

" _First off, lose the glasses. No offence, but you kind of look dorky with them on."_ I pulled the glasses from her face. She began to squint. _"Can you see okay?"_ I asked. She nodded.

" _A little… But I can get used to them."_ She said.

" _Next, your voice. Try to deepen it and have it around the same tone as mine."_ I said.

" _Like th-_ " She cleared her throat. _"Like this?"_ Already, I heard a change from a shy school student to someone with a few shades of maturity, the voice of someone who has seen horrors beyond imagination.

" _Perfect, though your hair doesn't fit it… You mind?"_ I asked her. She shook her head and I pulled the braids down. Her long, waist-length hair swished downwards. _"Now you got the appearance down, you need the personality to go along with it."_ I said to her.

" _What do you mean?"_ She asked in her normal voice.

" _You need to act like me, so you need to think like me… How will we do that?"_ I asked myself more than I asked her. An idea struck. _"Have you had a friend?"_ I asked her. She nodded.

" _Of course I do. She's what inspired me to do this in the first place."_ She said.

" _Imagine a scenario like this: your friend, who you have known for all your life, is shot down before your eyes as you go into a long, deep sleep. When you first wake up, all you remember is your friend dying."_ I can see in her eyes the shock of such a concept as they trembled. _"All care in the world has left you as you constantly think of who it was that killed her and why. Why would anyone bother to kill such a kind and innocent person like her? Assuming she_ is _kind and innocent, right?"_ I asked. She nodded rapidly. _"So, how do you feel if you were in that scenario?"_ I asked her.

"… _Angry… upset… I don't even want to think about it…"_ She began to cry.

" _If you're going to be me, then at least know what I went through when I lost Maria!"_ I snap at her. There was an uncomfortable few moments of silence before she spoke up.

" _You lost someone too?"_ She asked. I nodded. That word though… Too…

" _You lost your friend, didn't you?"_ I asked. She paused for a moment.

" _In a way… yes."_ She said.

" _Then you know the pain I felt. That pain you feel… act it out. Then you will know what it's like to be me."_ I said. With that, I left. She got up and prepared for her take.

* * *

The Author and I looked at the finished production of her introduction scene for _Super Sonico Adventure 2: Battle_. Needless to say, the author smiled upon seeing the girl, dressed in a white and purple uniform with black stockings, hold up the Chaos Emerald and speak out her line:

" _It all starts with this, a jewel containing the ultimate power…"_ I smiled as well. The darkness in her tone of her voice fitted the scene perfectly. I could even see her bare a smirk comparable to that of a serious villain in the making.

" _She's perfect!"_ I said as the scene played out. _"Who is she?"_ I asked the author.

" _She said her name was Akemi Homura… Thank you again, Shadow. You really saved my ass there… Shame Ryuko didn't get the spotlight. Eh, hopefully she'll get some role in that television show she told me about."_ The author said.I nod.

From that day forward, I gained the resolve to be in fanmakes again, because if someone as timid as Homura was able to play someone as cold as me, I could probably do my best to fit in to such roles as Bambi or Simba…

However, over time, the resolve dropped as the fanmakes became more and more predictable. Eventually, I stopped caring all over again and decided to make a show of it. I quit jobs that I found too stupid, got fired from jobs that I goofed off in, and I only rarely did well on some fanmakes.

When the tail was crushing me, I was wondering why I stuck. Why didn't I leave? I thought back to that day because that was the day I knew… there's still hope to be had. Good roles are out there. I just didn't bother to pick out the right ones.

* * *

As soon as the final strike came to take me out, I heard the explosion of an RPG and the sound of stumbling. I opened my eyes and saw the Dracchiosaurus writhe as it was blinded. Smoke came from the side of its face as it looked like a rocket blew a chunk of skin off. Instead of any gore, the hole made from the explosion was empty and hollow.

I flew into the hole and attacked the monster from the inside out before breaking out of his chest with full force. I look around to see who it was that fired the RPG, but it seemed no one fired it. However, I caught a small glimpse of someone on the rooftop. Long, flowing black hair, that purple-and-white uniform, even the way she stood briefly before she walked away… That person helped remind me what I'd fight for. A brief glimmer headed my way. The Purple Chaos Emerald. I smirked.

I was a princess, a warrior, a spy, a cat, and a leader. I have played many roles, but I am going to play a role I haven't played in a long time:

Myself.

"Chaos… CONTROL!" I shouted as I touched the stone. Time slowed to a crawl and I flew to the monster.

First, I smacked his claw away and grabbed the girls. I teleported them back to Toontown. My attention turned to the Dracciosaurus. I kicked it up into the air, flew up, and kicked it back down again. Its armor slowly began to break away. Time resumed as I stared down at the monster. The monster tried to get up, but Meteor ran to the Dracciosaurus and cut its legs with a large shaft with the Beyblade attached to it. As he did, he put a yellow cord into the top of the shaft and… well, let it rip.

" **METEOR STORM PUNISHER!** "

The Beyblade flew around the rest of the Dracciosaurus' armor and broke it piece by piece. By the time it landed the final blow, its armor looked cracked. The Beyblade kicked it up in the air as I threw Chaos Spear after Chaos Spear, knocking it into the ground. I continued blasting until I could only see a cloud of dust. When the smoke cleared, only its big, lizard-like body remained. I flew down, picked up the monster, and carried him up into the air. When I was far away enough, I expended all of my energy.

" **CHAOS… BLAAAAAAST!** " I shouted as I engulfed myself in a red fireball of energy. I'm pretty sure everyone could see it from here. When the light faded, I had the kid in my hands, bawling his eyes out.

"I… I just wanted a girlfriend! Is that too hard to ask? Is it?!" He asked. I smirked.

"You're not a chubby kid. Go outside and actually talk to someone. Maybe you'd learn a thing or two about relationships." I said before I punched him to the ground. That's when I noticed the lack of inhibitor rings on by wrists. I began to feel woozy. " _Heh… Musta taken a lot out of me…_ " I muttered before falling to the ground.

* * *

" _Shadow! Did you hear! Super Sonico Adventure 2: Battle_ _was a huge success! They're now asking for the rights to make Super Sonico Adventure 3: Heroes! Who knows, maybe this guy will make fanmakes of all our adventures! Wouldn't that be great, Shadow?"_ I could hear that annoying hedgehog's voice screech across the phone, yet it's a nostalgic sound for me.

" _Yeah… So I heard."_ I said.

" _Oh yeah. Amy and I watched the fanmake last night. She thought her cast was sort of bland and that she'd_ never _fall in love for Sonico. I almost thought the guy they casted for Tails was a girl._ " I could hear Sonic laugh on the other line. " _Though I wouldn't be surprised if he was. They genderswapped me and you in the show. Gotta have to say, your actor nailed in the head with your character. Who taught her to act like that?_ "

" _I did."_ I said.

" _Well, Shadow, I think you have the makings of a movie star. Hey, if Eggman starts actin' up or if he's controlling another powerful monster, I'll let you know, aight? Gotta head over to Mario's now. Megaman and Pac-Man wanna see who can beat Shulk the fastest. Well, gotta juice."_ Click. I sat there and wondered about Sonic's compliment. For all that time, I had buried that memory among the crap that I had to be put through. But now, as I felt unconscious, I can remember it clear as crystal.

* * *

My vision blurred as I opened my eyes. It felt as if everything that had happened before was all a dream… I swear if that was true, I'd gouge out the eyes of this writer. However, a soft snore caught my attention. I turned my head to see Maria sleeping on a chair next to what I'd assume to be my IV drip.

"M…Maria?" I asked her. She opened her eyes. For the first time in a long ass while – No, I'm not going with forever – I felt a powerful emotion in my body: happiness.

"Shadow!" She ran over and gave me a huge hug. I didn't hesitate to return the hug. I heard someone step close to me. It was Meteor, though without his armor. Along with him was Judge Doom.

"Hey. You've been out for a week. Guess that blast must have taken a lot out of you." Meteor said. Judge Doom spoke up next.

"We apprehended Hershey. Given that he's a minor, he's only getting off with heavy probation and managed to coerce him into bringing back the characters he killed." Judge Doom stepped back as Meteor walked up to me.

"We did it, Shadow. We saved them." Meteor patted me on the shoulder, but I force it away.

"Yeah, yeah, the celebrations can wait. Can't you see I'm having a bonding moment here?" I told off the man. He simply smiled and went on his way back.

"I understand. My girlfriend's probably wondering where I am. Knowing her, she might hold a kooky séance to summon me." Meteor chuckled and walked away. I turned my attention to Maria.

"Shadow… I missed you so much." Maria said.

"I miss you too." I tell her. From that day on, I retired from the Fanmake business and settled down, catching up on the missing time between Maria and I. I still took some time out to help Sonic with the Doctor's latest schemes, but my life as a Fanmake actor is long over and I instead become a Fanmake teacher, having actors properly portray the people they mean to act as or going with their instincts and changing the plot of the story.

Well… I _did_ do one little gig before retirement.

* * *

"ALRIGHT MEN! THE VOLCANO IS JUST IN THE CLEAR! WE JUST GOTTA TAKEDOWN SOME DRAGONS AND WE'LL BLOW THIS RING UP! WHO'S WITH ME!?" I shouted at my fellowship, who cheer as I load my pistol. The Fellowship and I flew on our eagles towards Mount Doom as we fought off some of the Fellbeasts. I shot at several of them… All this while _I Am All Of Me_ played in the background.

Hey, I was retiring, might as well go out with a bang, right?


End file.
